The present invention relates to telecommunications systems and particularly to "800" telecommunications networks.
In any business, providing information to a customer is often critical in order to allow the customer to make an informed decision about buying a product or service from the business. In providing such information to the customer, the business is typically concerned about any costs the customer must bear in order to obtain the information and the type of information provided to the customer. In particular, a business which relies on a telephone call for contact with the customer is concerned about the cost of the telephone call to the customer and the type of information conveyed through the telephone call.
Since a customer who has to pay for a telephone call to a business in order to inquire, i.e., receive information, about a product or service may be less inclined to make the telephone call to the business, two alternative methods currently exist to eliminate this cost. A business may use an outward bound telecommunications service (e.g., the AT&T MEGACOM.RTM. service), i.e., where the business is the calling party thereby eliminating the cost of the telephone call to the customer, the called party. However, since the telephone call is initiated by the business, the business typically calls customers which may not be interested in the products or services of the business. As a result, some percentage of the telephone calls to customers are actually wasted. An alternative to an outward bound telecommunications service is an "800" telecommunications service, i.e., one which allows a customer to be the calling party, at no cost to the customer. An "800" telecommunications service is provided to a subscribing business by a telecommunications network. As a result, interested customers are provided with an incentive to call a business in order to inquire, i.e., get information, about the products and services of the business.
Once a telephone call is established between the calling party and the called party, by an outward bound or an "800" service (thereby eliminating the cost to the customer in obtaining the information), the business is concerned about the type of information that is conveyed through the telephone call. In current outward bound or "800" services, the business typically provides another person, i.e., a representative of the business to provide verbal, or audio, information to the customer in order to assist the customer in making a buying decision.